


beneath the weight of pride

by too_many_umbrellas



Category: Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Angst, Gen, Number Five | The Boy Needs A Hug, Number Five | The Boy-centric, uhh what do i even tag this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:48:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27808588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/too_many_umbrellas/pseuds/too_many_umbrellas
Summary: Five knows what it feels like to fly high in the clouds on a pair of wings. He knows what it feels like to drop into the ocean’s waves, and drown in its depths.He knows what it feels like to allow pride to get the best of him, leaving him to die in the ruins of his own making.(aka, Five Hargreeves is the reincarnation of Icarus, and what follows.)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 39





	beneath the weight of pride

**Author's Note:**

> so there’s a bit of this that’s inspired by a line from the show Trollhunters- “A life of almost is a life of never.” is the quote i believe  
> i hope you guys enjoy!!  
> TWs: DEATH, DROWNING, BURNING

Five Hargreeves knew that this life was not his first. 

It was a piece of knowledge that he had always carried in his soul. He didn’t exactly remember his first life, just flashesof a mysterious past born in the haze of dreams. 

He lived on the cusp of half-remembered memories, of a world that just brushed his fingertips every time he reached for it, though never enough for him to get a good grip. 

He lived a life of  _almosts_ . 

_Almost_ close with his siblings, _almost_ good enough for his father’s praise, _almost_ ready to time travel. 

He lived a life of  _almosts_ . 

He lived a life of  _nevers_ . 

But one day, he read a book about a Greek boy named Icarus and something  _clicked_ . 

Memories came flooding back soon after that. By the time he was ten years old he remembered what it felt to be imprisoned, to glide through the air with the taste of  _freedom_ on his lips, to scream as his wings melted and he fell beneath the waves. He knew what it felt like to die, saltwater in his lungs and regret in his heart. 

He kept this all to himself, of course. Reginald Hargreeves was a scientist before everything else, even his duties as a father. Five didn’t doubt he would be curious of the idea of rebirth, and want to study it. But he had no desire to be a lab rat. 

So he hid, and he trained, and he did his best to not make the same mistakes as before. 

Except he let his pride get the better of him  _again_ . He ran away from his father, Grace, his  _siblings_ , into the swirling winds of time, and got lost in an empty world that reeked of death and ash. 

_When will you learn your lesson?_ his mind screamed at him as he ran through flaming rubble.  _ You’ve flown too close to the sun once again, and now your wings are  **melting** .  _

Standing in the terrible and empty open of the Apocalypse, Five reflected on how he allowed himself to fall beneath the waves, and wondered if, this time, he would drown under the weight of his pride. 


End file.
